Mercenaries and Adventurers

On the other side, Keir's nightmare took a turn.

Just as many of the Ska Chamber of Commerce personnel who were shot by them last night and killed by Kiel were moving on the ground towards Kiel who fell to the ground.

The surroundings turned into an khaki color at some point, and the originally dark nightmare with no real boundaries suddenly became a tangible entity.

The ground, which was originally the pebbles of Kuye Village, soon and inexplicably turned into moist, soft soil.

Plop, plop.

Many mushrooms sprouted from the soft ground. These mushrooms grew as quickly as if they had eaten fertilizer. They formed a mysterious mushroom circle, surrounding and protecting Kiel who was curled up on the ground.

The phantoms of the dead who want to gnaw at Kil seem to be subconsciously afraid of these unknown types of colorful mushrooms.

Like blowing up a balloon, those mushrooms grew up and soon became more than two meters tall. These mushrooms are fat and plump, with human-like limbs sprouting from the thick umbrella necks. When squeezed, the muscles on the strong arms are bulging, which is very scary.

The phantoms of the dead were even more frightening.

There was a sound of waves.

An earth-colored old goblin with a long beard suddenly appeared on the suspiciously bright umbrellas of these mushrooms.

It sat on a big snail shell, grinning and waving its arms vigorously. The strong mushrooms under it immediately grew a human face on one side of the umbrella cover, and ferociously moved the mycelium at the roots toward the surrounding surroundings. The phantom of the dead rushed away.

The old goblin reached out and pointed at the phantom of the dead, and then the strong mushroom used his muscular arms to catch the phantom of the dead that was moving on the ground and trying to escape.

"Hehe, quack!"

The old goblin danced randomly on the snail shell, and the strong mushroom followed the instructions and squeezed the captured phantom of the dead onto its poisonous and suspicious umbrella cover.

"Ouch, ouch, this thing is poisonous!"

Another one was caught by the strong mushroom, and he also rubbed it on the umbrella cover.

"It's poisonous, it's poisonous! Stop rubbing it! Stop rubbing it!"

One by one, these phantoms of the dead were caught one after another, and then they couldn't stand the play of these strong mushrooms, and they burst into pieces with wailing sounds.

The old goblin jumped up excitedly, controlled his 'mount', and rushed over to suck the fragments from the exploded phantoms of the dead into the snail shell.

After a while, all the phantoms of the dead disappeared, and each strong mushroom took root on the spot, with its muscular arms crossed calmly across its chest.

The mushroom faces, which were originally blurry, twisted and changed into the appearance of Keir.

The old goblin danced to the side of Kil's head lying on the ground and chirped, as if asking Kil to open his eyes and see what he was capable of.

However, Kil seemed to have relaxed his brows, and fell asleep again in his dream.

After chattering for a long time, the old goblin saw that Kiel didn't respond, and then he angrily realized that his performance just now was not seen by Kiel.

It disappeared again with a pop, but returned to the lady's dream, asking for a reward from Lady Apolifina.

-

real world.

For a while, Knight Crowe and Knight Rumi didn't hear Kil's uncomfortable humming and the sound of himself twisting in his sleep from the carriage.

Knight Rumi raised his eyebrows, while Knight Crow insisted on maintaining a confident face.

The two looked at each other.

"Looking for someone to take a look? My armor is too heavy and I can't get on this little carriage."

Knight Rumi said with a raised brow.

There was nothing wrong with Knight Crow, and he waved his hand confidently to let him do it.

Soon a guard was called over and jumped on Kiel's carriage, which spontaneously followed the convoy.

He opened the curtain that covered the car's hood and went in to check on the sleeping Kiel.

"Sir, Kil is fine. He's fine. It's just that he seemed to have sweated a little before. Maybe it's because the curtain in the carriage blocked the wind outside, making it a little stuffy."

The guard jumped out of the carriage and reported to the two knights the strange incident that had led him to do such a thing.

The two looked at each other again.

But this time, Knight Crow puffed up his chest more confidently, raised his chin slightly, and said in a good mood: "Very good, you can go down."

When the confused guard walked away, Knight Crow could no longer hold back and chuckled softly: "How is it? What I said, this young man has a strong mind and will not be troubled by this so easily. "

"Yes, yes, he can survive it, and he doesn't need help from others. But why did I see a bottle of calming potion on your belt?"

Knight Rumi couldn't see how arrogant this old man, Knight Crow, was, and immediately exposed the opponent's backup preparations. In other words, this potion, which can stabilize the user's mental condition, was Knight Crow's main preparation plan before.

"Ahem. Those are the ones I kept for myself. My strength has increased a lot recently and I need them to stabilize my spirit."

Knight Crow explained stiffly, and then gently urged the war horse: "By the way, I have to lead people to go out for reconnaissance. You should keep an eye on this place."

"Don't you want to take a break? Everyone involved last night has taken a break."

"What's the point of resting? I'm going nowhere right now. I participated in an intra-group competition with the Border Knights last year. I was airborne, moved in the wild, and fought continuously for a few days. I didn't even eat a bite of food, and I felt even worse. I haven't slept at all, doesn't it affect me from winning the competition?"

Knight Crow said this and raised the long sword on his waist. This well-made long sword inlaid with many magic gems was the prize he won in that competition.

-

Kil woke up in a daze.

He felt sore all over, and he didn't feel relaxed at all after a rest. Instead, he felt even more tired than before going to bed as early as possible.

He got out of the carriage and looked up, only to realize that it was already afternoon.

At this time, the army logistics team where the carriage was located was resting in the open space on the roadside, replenishing water and food for the livestock, and allowing the militiamen to rest where they were.

Looking at the scorching sun above his head, Kil felt thirsty, so he found a water jug ​​in the carriage, picked it up and drank half of it in one breath.

"Phew. Feeling better now."

He breathed a sigh of relief and vaguely couldn't remember what happened when he was sleeping. He could only vaguely see mushrooms and some people he killed.

But now that the sun was shining, he no longer felt the worry and fear he had before.

Although he still felt a little sorry for the people of the Ska Chamber of Commerce who surrendered and were killed, Kil shook his head and decided not to think about those things.

And he vaguely felt that the test arranged for him by Knight Crow was a bit bad. Even if those businessmen forcibly occupied the local village and intercepted the village's taxes, it seemed that they should not be executed in such a violent method.

Because the villagers in Kuye Village were obviously helping the people from the Chamber of Commerce.

He lowered his head, looked at the hard leather gloves on his hands, shook them, and felt a little bitter.

Kil suddenly stood up, looked around from the carriage driver's seat, and immediately saw Knight Crow who was about to lead a small number of forward troops.

The opponent was wearing heavy armor and riding on a monster-like tall armored war horse, which was very conspicuous.

Next to his carriage, Kil found the horse that was being fed with wild grass by Knight Crow's guard. He walked over and thanked the guard, turned around and mounted the horse, preparing to find Knight Crow.

"By the way, Kil. Lord Knight Crow asked you to wake up and go find him. He said he has something to tell you."

The bodyguard stopped Keir.

Kil nodded: "I understand, and I happen to have something to ask the Lord Knight."

"Walk."

Patting the horse's head and gently knocking its belly, the horse moved its hooves obediently and walked forward.

Walking out of the trimming team, Kiel quickly caught up with Crow Knight's team.

"My lord. I'm here."

Kil rode a horse and walked beside Knight Crow, bumped his chest with his fist, and saluted the knight.

Knight Crow nodded and said to Kil, "Are you awake? How are you? Is your sleep okay?"

?

Keir was a little confused, but he still replied: "I don't feel very well. I feel more tired."

Unexpectedly, Knight Crow laughed softly: "Haha, your situation is pretty good. Most people who can still fall asleep after killing so many people in one night are already in good psychological quality. Now. And you, Joe Kiel, can wake up well after falling asleep, think clearly and be in good spirits, which is beyond most people."

"Well, I saw you right. You are a good prospect."

Kil came back to his senses and said, "Lord Knight, could it be that you had anticipated what happened last night and what happened just now?"

"I'm not lying to you, Kil. This is a matter of course. I said it." Knight Crow turned his head and looked at the scenery in the distance, lush forests and mountains, as well as large fields and villages. On the trade road, there are caravans of all sizes stepping aside to get out of the way, travelers on horseback on long journeys, travelers on foot carrying luggage, and there are also large flowers blooming beside the trade road.

"I said, this is a test. A test is a test. Do you understand?"

"Is the test difficult?" Kil pursed his lips and looked at Knight Crow and asked.

"Of course, if it's not difficult, it wouldn't be called a test. Do you think bravely killing fifty enemies in a battle with the assistance of other militiamen is a test? No, that's just a prerequisite for the test."

"What kind of test is it? Will it require such cruel conditions?"

Kil jumped out word by word. He raised his head and glared at Knight Crow, who was higher than him, but because of the obstruction of the helmet, he could only see the other person's nose and mouth.

"Huh." Knight Crow did not directly answer Kil's question, but instead talked about other things.

"Kiel, do you know that knights like me, I mean in the entire kingdom, knights are most likely to die. Under what circumstances?"

Kil shook his head. Of course he didn't know, but he could take a guess: "I think it should be when knights are fighting knights, right? After all, you are so powerful, ordinary soldiers are no match for you. If we meet on the battlefield, , the only person who can bring danger to the knights should be the opponent's knights."

Unexpectedly, Knight Crow waved his hand, shook his head and said heavily: "No. You guessed wrong. Big mistake."

"Huh? How could it be? He couldn't have died of old age, right? Just like the old knight Gulov before, he would have slowly died of old age in bed in the retirement manor he carefully prepared for himself."

"Haha, you're pretty good at guessing. But unfortunately, it's not right. Let me tell you, the place where knights die most often is when they deal with the various weird monsters and warcraft that emerge in the vast land. Of course. , but also some weirder stuff that’s hard to describe using common words.”

He pointed to the mountains in the distance: "Although the surroundings are peaceful and peaceful, but believe it or not, you can go over several mountains into the mountains and enter those ancient mountains that no one has ever been to. There are Hidden things you never thought possible.”

"Intelligent non-human races that have never been recorded in race records; terrifying invisible ghosts that can steal human lives invisibly; monsters as tall as hills; powerful monsters with some abilities that are completely difficult to deal with. And there are also activated forests. , giant rocks that can talk and eat people, soft tentacles with sticky and corrosive acid extending from the cracks in the ground, huge underground insects that are more numerous than the entire kingdom's population, and swarms of giant man-eating birds in the sky .”

Knight Crow talked more and more, and it was obvious that some of the things in his words were not just random examples, but most of them were things he had seen and dealt with with his own eyes.

"Hey, these things are the biggest reason for the sacrifice of the knights, at least in the kingdom under our feet."

Kil was silent for a while: "So, what does this have to do with my test? Sir?"

"What do you think is most needed in the face of these things? This question is also a test, three chances."

Keir didn't dare to make random guesses, so after thinking for a while, he raised his head and made his first guess: "It's about living, it's about the ability to survive. You have to live first before you can deal with the enemies you mentioned."

"Haha, it's interesting, but it's not accurate enough and it's too broad."

Kiel thought about it for more time, and then said: "It's the reconnaissance ability. I think knowing the opponent's situation in advance, and having contingency preparations on our side, can we have a chance to win. There is a saying in my hometown, you know yourself Only by knowing every piece of intelligence about the enemy can we win every battle.”

(Know thyself, ever-victorious.)

"This is the truth, but there are so many convenient things in the world. Even the great gods do not dare to claim to be omniscient. Omniscient means omnipotent, but there are many gods in the world, and no one rules the world. So your guess makes sense, but it’s not what I think really affected the death of so many knights in various incidents.”

Kil carefully considered what Knight Crow said before several times, and then thought about the previous test, his vague dreams, and the feeling after waking up just now.

Then a vague answer appeared on his lips: "Yes, yes."

Knight Crow turned his head and looked at Keir with encouraging eyes.

"Is it mental calmness and the ability to control emotions?" Keir said his guess.

He is not a knight, let alone a particularly outstanding and powerful knight like Knight Crow. Without his height, he will not really feel that his ability to calm down and control his emotions is so amazing.

So I'm not sure what I said.

But the result is exactly the opposite. Knight Crow nodded silently.

"You're right. I have been in the army for more than ten years and have personally fought countless tough enemies. Many of them have died. Those who are stronger than me, those with deeper family backgrounds than mine, and those who are much higher than my family. , so many knights died. And why did I and others fight out of a pool of blood? Over the years, we have been exchanging letters, and some people have even sought confirmation from many sources, including asking gods and well-known wise men. The question was asked to some of the well-known heroes of the empire.

The answers are all different, but they are more or less related to the fact that it is important for knights to be mentally and emotionally calm when facing an unknown and powerful enemy. "

Knight Crowe's voice dropped when he said this: "The vast majority of knights' deaths are related to these. You don't know that although knights are far stronger than ordinary people in terms of physical strength and combat skills, the vast majority of knights' personalities Perverse, their spiritual cultivation is not much better than that of ordinary people. This leads to the fact that when they face various enemies that they have never faced before, especially some rare and powerful monsters and monsters with strange abilities, those knights often quickly Died at the hands of the enemy.”

Kil listened silently. This was the first time he knew about the powerful enemies faced by powerful knights like Knight Crow and the actual difficulties in battle.

He had always thought that these strong men had an easy life and had no enemies. Although he was well aware of Knight Lanisa's difficulties when facing the Wolf King of the North, he had always thought that this was just a matter of Knight Lanisa's own lack of strength. He never knew that in Knight Crow's view, all the Knights all face this dilemma.

It's not that you don't have enough strength, there are always ways to quickly increase your strength, such as powerful weapons, sturdy and easy-to-use armor, or riding beasts that are on par with knights in strength, etc.

It's not a matter of intelligence. In other words, this aspect of intelligence has never existed.

In the vast mountains, deep dark forests, uninhabited wilderness, and deep in the thick earth, monsters and magical beasts that no one has ever seen before will appear at any time. There is never any information. Unless you ask an astrologer to predict today's weather and fortune, how can you know the strength and capabilities of the new enemy.

Thinking about it this way, the knights can only make sufficient preparations in addition to physical preparations, as well as their own spiritual preparations.

-

At night, Kiel started fighting with his bare hands against the idle and bored militia guards in the camp.

This time, his attacks were faster and more brutal, always attacking the weakest one among the many people surrounding him.

Use the movement of your feet to try not to be surrounded by others, but to face up to three enemies in front, without exposing your back to others.

He will give priority to defeating the weakest enemy, and then maintain his fast movement to confuse the enemy's position and prevent them from rushing over at once.

After doing this several times, Kil knocked down the fighting guards one by one, and finally achieved the result of defeating ten guards with his bare hands in one battle.

The militiamen, whose self-restraint was inferior to that of the guards, did not dare to leave the field again, and the guards also showed enough respect for the rapid progress of the young boy Kiel.

They all knew that Kier was selected by the Crow Knights before, but no one had much respect for this lucky young boy. But now Keir not only defeated them one to ten in the fight, but also heard that in a temporary mission last night, Keel killed fifty enemies by himself.

Fifty people.

Many people fight with less than fifty people, but not only did Keir kill so many people, but he did it in a night battle.

This made some people consciously give up the possibility of winning the battle with Kiel while fully armed.

You can't beat them with bare hands, and you probably won't be able to beat them when you're armed.

With sweat all over his body, Kil took the water from his companions and drank it all. Most of these people made money when Kiel fought and bought him when he won.

Keir chuckled and didn't feel bored by these people's attentiveness. After all, he wouldn't hit the smiling person with his hand. Although the other party won money on the gambling board because of him, Keir felt that it was nothing. After all, on the deserted business road, there was only this little entertainment at night.

Unlike many caravans traveling on trade routes, the army does not need to calculate how far it needs to travel each day, and then carefully select a safe foothold.

They won't have any hard-headed bandits coming to rob them.

In this way, the combined caravans following the Kendall County Army bravely and safely camped and rested in a deserted place with the army from the same country.

"Kiel, Knight Crow has something to do with you. I want you to come over."

Some bodyguards came over and asked Kil to leave, and turned to watch others fight with his bare hands.

Keir nodded, knowing what was going on.

He passed the test, the test that Crow Knight felt was the most important. So he agreed during the day that the knight would officially lead him into the knight's path tonight.